Sunday, April 13, 2014

April 13th 1975. A day of one of the most brutal downfalls of the Lebanese History. A date that will remain engraved in the hearts and minds of millions, a date that has announced, for many, the beginning of one of the worst nightmares a human mind can witness.

I was reading just yesterday As Safir and An Nahar newspaper covers that date back to the Civil War, Taef Agreement, and the Israeli War during the Lebanese American University's Model Arab League commemoration of the Civil War. There were so many covers with headlines that made me have chills and freeze; massacres in camps, bombings of civilians and hospitals, killings and blood sheds on checkpoints. One headline in particular caught my attention. It stated "Beirut is burning, and no white flags are raised" I stood still and stared at it. One of the students that I was training noticed and approached me by asking "Which one do you think is worse, the war with Israel or the Civil war?" I did not answer immediately because I had never asked myself this question before, so I had no possible answer. The only thing I told him was "I will let you know"

This article is my answer to him.

Being attacked by a foreign "group of people" (I wouldn't consider the fight with Israel proportional), having our hospitals and Red Cross convoys, civilians' homes, infrastructures bombed is shameful and humiliating. What is even more humiliating is having this foreign power occupy our capital which represents our state's sovereignty, as well as the southern territories of our beloved country. Being under occupation, thousands of martyrs' lives taken away was definitely a "hit the bottom" for us.

But what cannot be tolerated nor forgiven is the fact that thousands have perished on the hands of people from their very own country, neighborhood, region, and even religion just because they had a different political belief. What cannot be forgiven is that heads were cut, people were bombed, bodies were mutilated, women and kids were raped and men were abducted and tortured because of their sect by people who share the same blood and fall under the same flag that should unite us all; the Lebanese flag.
What is enraging me most is that on April 13th 2014 almost 39 years after this dark and barbarous phase our country encountered, faces from that specific war are still in power, and people are still following them blindly and re-electing them despite the gallons of blood on their hands. Almost all of them remain unpunished and still roam around the country in their fancy cars, with sheep clapping for them wherever they go.
So I guess to me, the civil war represents the absolute reincarnation of inhumanity, mainly because it has been done by us Lebanese. Our parents and Grandparents have allowed unwillingly this war to take place and to last for a long period of time because of the lack of knowledge and faith in Lebanon.

On this day, I would like this article to be an open call to the Lebanese Youth, to not let this regretful event to occur again, and that is by choosing their representatives freely during the next elections, to open their eyes and protest against those who want it to happen again.